


A Star and A Sky

by SarIIon



Category: Witch's Heart (Video Game)
Genre: Bonus Stage Spoilers (Witch's Heart), Complete, F/M, Fluff, Stargazing, hand holding, no witch's heart AU, prompt exchange, they deserve the world
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-10-10
Updated: 2019-10-10
Packaged: 2020-11-28 22:16:20
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,368
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20973929
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/SarIIon/pseuds/SarIIon
Summary: I've got the strangest feelingThis isn't our first time around





	A Star and A Sky

**Author's Note:**

  * For [iamyourmagician](https://archiveofourown.org/users/iamyourmagician/gifts).

Contrary to popular belief, the night sky wasn’t black. No, in reality, the dark fabric of the twilight hours existed in a shifting expanse of subtle indigoes and endless sapphires. It was a breathtaking veil accented tastefully with a light scattering of stars. And those small pinpricks of light were his favorite part. They weren’t particularly large nor were they as flamboyant as the day time sun, but there was something special about those tiny flames brave enough to shine in the darkness.

In the city, the starlit emissions faded silently into murky smoke and never-ending noise and dense light pollution, but here, out here in the woods, the midnight canvas was only limited by the range of his vision.

A gentle night breeze pushed at his hair, sending it fluttering away from his face for the briefest of moments before silken strands of honey-blonde cascaded back into place.

_ Beautiful…It really was._

“I thought I’d find you up here.” Claire’s cheerful hum as she plopped down bedside him shook him out of his reveries, but Noel found that he didn’t mind at all.

“Were you looking for me?”

Perhaps she had been, perhaps she hadn’t. But it always seemed to happen that way; she always seemed to find him staring up at the night sky with the softest expression she’d ever seen on a human face. Tonight, he’d left the window open, and some wistful note on the breeze beckoned her to follow it through the corridors, up the stairs, and onto the small attic balcony. The air was noticeably thinner than the lower floors of the mansion; maybe it was the change in oxygen content that brought on a slightly light-headed feeling as she gazed up at the sky…or maybe it was the fact she’d stayed up late last night helping Wilardo cover the flowerbeds before the first fall frost and was only running on three hours of sleep…Regardless, Claire yawned widely, scooting closer until their shoulders touched. “It’s freezing out here, aren’t you cold?”

“…Ah, I suppose it is a bit wintry.” Blinking in surprise as the thought only just crossed his mind for the first time that night, he experimentally curled the fingers of his right hand only to find them numb from the chill. “But the view is worth it. Hey, look, look! You can even see Jupiter tonight, the sky is so clear!”

She followed his gesture toward the heavens and couldn’t help but break into a breathless laugh. “It’s beautiful!”

“…Claire, you’re, um, looking the wrong way.” Chilled fingers gently clasped hers, folding three digits and simultaneously extending her pointer finger before lifting her hand toward the southwest. “There, see that one?”

“Yeah! What’s the bright one next to it?”

“The red one is Antares. Dschubba is the star slightly above it, and Shaula the bright one right there. Together with a number of other stars (many of which are too dim for the naked eye to spot), they form the Scorpius constellation.”

“Dsch-Dschubba? Huh?! That’s really what it’s called?”

“It does sound silly, right? It actually does have another name—Delta Scorpii.” Lowering their arms, he blinked slowly. “Many stars have alternative names relating to their constellations—for example, Shaula is also known as Lambda Scorpii—and they are useful in orienting…But I think both names are important. Even if the unique name isn’t always intuitive…There’s something special about a name not tied to anything else’s. A name that’s solely one’s own…”

After a few heartbeats of thought, Claire returned a nod and a question about another star. Blue eyes lit up with excitement as he gestured to the small cluster, smiling as he described it and its stellar neighbors. It went on for some time like that—him pointing out shining stars in the night sky, and her listening with fascinated awe. And after a particularly long tangent about the astronomical phenomena visible this time of the year, Claire let her gaze wander down from the heavens to search his face.

“…Ah…?”

“…Erm, Noel, thank you…for sharing this with me.” By ‘this’ she meant the moment, the knowledge, the exuberant passion shining in the depths of those sparkling eyes. By ‘this’ she meant all of those things, and judging by the embarrassed flush of his cheeks, her sincerity didn’t go unnoticed. “I can tell, astronomy is something you really love.”

“Oh, it’s not anything big at all. Watching the night sky is just something I’ve enjoyed ever since I was…ever since I can remember.” The small stolen glimpses of the moon, pilfered by lifting the bottom corner of heavy bedroom curtains ever so slightly in order to make as little sound as possible, were some of his earliest memories. And among his most precious. It was always a challenge, inching out of bed after sending a quick prayer that the wooden floorboards wouldn’t creak when he set one small foot down on them followed by another. However, that wasn’t the end of it; the actual journey across his bedroom to the window consisted of bunching up fistfuls of ruffled nightgown to minimize fabric rustling, breathing as shallowly as possible, and slowly creeping to the window sill while throwing anxious glances at the closed door every so often. If he was caught, there would be consequences…he knew that from experience. But they never stopped him the next time around. Because the small sliver of wafting twilight he could see from the fraction he dared lift the curtain was always worth it.

Beautiful…The night was breathtaking in every way. Wild, unfettered, and boundless like a wide ocean of stars promising unfathomable knowledge, limitless freedom.

Sometimes, he would imagine dropping his hairclip and watching the rich inky sapphires soak into its pale, washed out petals. A little bit of spark, a little bit of the life which the night wind embodied, a little bit of hope to carry with him and drip upon the roots of black saplings that sprung up so commonly in places devoid of soil. Starlight, it was a natural herbicide for those trees.

“…Noel?” Claire stifled a yawn as she placed her right hand over his, and it was only then did he notice his fingers were still interlaced with hers from when he showed her the position of Jupiter in the sky earlier.

“…Ah, err, sorry! I got lost in thought…My fingers are probably cold.”

“Ahaha, yeah, they are.” Smiling cheerfully, she clasped both her hands around his in some innocent attempt at warming him up. Claire yawned again and dropped her head to rest against his shoulder. From that point of contact, and from where their hands joined together, her body heat radiated outward in gentle waves which warmed his fingers and made his chest tingle in a strange, indescribable way.

Despite the chilly autumn air, they sat there for a while more in comfortable silence, content to simply stare up at the sky and enjoy each other’s company.

“It’s strange…sometimes I get the feeling that this isn’t a new thing, looking at the stars together…Noel, have we…” Claire said, and the drowsiness lacing her words did nothing to hinder his understanding.

Eyes widening, he held his breath, waiting for the end of a question which didn’t come. Instead of words, a soft snoring concluded her sentence, and looking down, Noel blinked in surprise to find Claire had drifted off mid-thought. _She really was something._

Frustration, sadness, relief? Perhaps it was a little of all of those emotions which touched his fine features briefly before vanishing in favor of a soft smile. With nothing to hinder her memories, perhaps one day Claire would remember—and that was something he’d hoped for despite everything—but if he was honest…it would be okay if she didn’t. Because they had all the time in the world to make new ones together.

The night brought with it a calming smell of hopeful tomorrows, the ambient sounds of rustling leaves, and an unexplainable calmness of mind that soothed at the heart.

And paired with the star snuggled up next to him, Noel found that he didn’t need anything else.

**Author's Note:**

> The Next Day:  
Sirius ground his teeth in exasperation as he shoved cups of ginger and honey tea (which he would never admit to making himself) into their hands. "I can't believe you guys. Sitting out in the cold all night like a bunch of idiots and then getting sick? Honestly, doing things like this still? You're not kids anymore…"  
Blinking, Claire turned to him with a look of confusion. "Still? Wait what?"  
"Ah, err…"  
Noel brought his teacup to his lips to hide an amused smile.
> 
> -It was a bit of a challenge finding a place in the city where I could see stars in the sky, but honestly writing outside at night was really nice, even if my fingers did start to freeze after a bit haha <3  
-[At the Window](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QijJBpF42dk) by OCTOBER is a song I really associate with Noel. It has such a calm yet wistful sound that makes me want to close my eyes and envision the endless night sky  
  
-These two have such a sweet dynamic in game and I’m glad to have had the chance to write them. Hope you enjoyed it <3


End file.
